Deafheaven @ Trees, 11/15/2015

Texas locals, Power Trip were the first to take to stage this Sunday night on a wet evening at Dallas’ Trees. They played with same tenacity and dynamic flare, that most of their fans have come to expect. Demonstrating their tight guitar-work and unmistakable stage presence, they threw the crowd into an uncontrollable flurry of head-banging and elbow-swinging. Power Trip fed the crowds energy-levels by playing crowd favorites as well as songs of their new full-length album. On the bands last song of the night, lead-vocalist Gale made sure to orchestrate the crowd into a frenzy by suggesting a massive circle-pit, and the rabid crowd happily obliged.

The night took an ominous turn, as Swedish Death Metal band Tribulation took the stage. With skin-tight outfits and terrifying face make-up, Tribulation begin their efforts to involve the crowd and prepare them for the headliner. In contrast to the band before them, energy levels began to wane fairly quickly. Most likely attributed to fact that the band was unseen and unheard of to most of the crowd. Their gimmicky stage presence (which looked to be 20 years too late), also did not truly allow audiences to fully immerse and engage themselves with the performance. Although, there were a few die-hard metal fans in the audience who looked on with enjoyment, the majority of the crowd carried on with little enthusiasm.

Finally, the last band of the night and the most anticipated takes the stage. Deafheaven begins their set and lead vocalist George Clarke demonstrated that he has more control over the crowd, they do themselves. Waving his arms around like a conductor, he orchestrated the audience to his will throughout the night.The band played their new album New Bermuda, in its entirety. The band dealt with an abundance of technical difficulties, the worst of which happened before the start of the song “Baby Blue”. Yet, the crowd did not falter, they waited patiently for their beloved band to recover and carry on with the night. Displaying a powerful performance the band turned the audience into a violent ocean. The night neared a close and the band left stage, but yet the crowd refuses to dissipate. The chant, hungry from for more, begging the band to return and satisfy their needs. The band obliges and returned to play two songs: “Sunbather” and “Dream House”. The crowd continued to break out into hysteria. Deafheaven played a powerful show. George Clarke’s vocals pierced through the heavy and hazy wall of guitars and the crowd. The emotion radiated from the band like the heat off the pavement on a hot summer’s day. The band left the crowd covered in sweat, bruised and battered, and most importantly they left the crowd satisfied.

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